


Candlelit and Tender

by Unquiet_Words



Category: Naruto
Genre: Budding Love, Fluff and Smut, M/M, hints of Mito/Touka
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-21
Updated: 2019-01-21
Packaged: 2019-10-13 14:22:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17489648
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unquiet_Words/pseuds/Unquiet_Words
Summary: Tobirama gets some well-deserved attention from his brother.





	Candlelit and Tender

**Author's Note:**

  * For [yetanotherauthor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/yetanotherauthor/gifts).



> Who is very much a _bad influence_ , and likes to distract me with good ideas.

With the years he’d spent breathing down his brother’s neck, Tobirama had assumed taking the hat officially would’ve made little difference. He already knew how to fill out the forms (he’d made most of them himself, after all), he’d been dealing with crotchety elders since long before the village had formed, attending council meetings had been part of his duties ever since he himself had demanded they  _have_  a council, and dealing with foreign dignitaries on his brother’s behalf had fallen onto his shoulders for as long as he could remember. Logic had told him the title change would make little difference since he’d all but been the hokage in the last few months of his brother’s reign of sorts.

He’d never liked being wrong. Particularly so when the outcome affected him so personally. He put the latest scroll from the unending pile back down on his desk, taking a moment to scrub at his sore eyes. The sun had begun to set, making this the fourth day in a row he’d stayed over in his office. His candle supply was running low. Making a mental note to pick up more the next day, and hoping he’d actually remember to this time, he set one up on his desk and lit it so as to not damage his eyesight any further.

There had hardly been a moment to breathe during his normal work hours. Clan heads and heirs alike coming in to complain about one another, their respective elders hot on their heels. More and more patrols were running into issues near the Yu no Kuni border, and their esteemed daimyō seemed set in his mind about ignoring his problems until they went away. His hands were tied until the idiot finally saw reason, but that made no difference to his own council or the families of the injured shinobi, accusing him of twiddling his thumbs while his subordinates took the blade for him.

How Hashirama could’ve taken the weight of the world on his shoulders and still looked so at peace spoke well of his soul. He sighed heavily at the thought, forcing himself to reread the sentence he’d managed not to understand a word of due to his wandering thoughts. The great sage above knew his brother was a fool, but certainly an admirable one for all he took upon him with nary a waver to that stupid grin always plastered to his face.

At least with him bearing the title, his brother could rest. The illness that had forced him to step down had all but disappeared in the last month, and it didn’t take a genius to notice how much good handing off the title had been for him. Dealing with the issues of an entire village was simply a small price to pay for his brother’s continued health and happiness, no matter that they blamed him for even the smallest of wrongdoings outside of his control.

A knock on the door brought him out of his dour musing, though his visitor didn’t wait for an invitation. Hashirama popped his head in with a little wave, as if he had a sixth sense for whenever his little brother needed ‘cheering up,’ as he put it.

“I brought dinner - thought you might be hungry. Fish sound good?” His brother held out a cloth bag in gesture, just the sight of which had Tobirama’s quite empty stomach growling. He waved him in, making sure to stack the forms in proper order as he made room enough for the both of them at his desk.

Part of him felt guilty, knowing how clearly his brother worried over him. Hashirama had taken to dropping in periodically just to make sure he’d slept, and had even done so when his own health had taken a turn for the worse. But he knew better than to let that guilt show; it was in his brother’s nature to put others before himself, and pointing that out would only lead to an argument that neither of them ever really won.

“Have you figured out who to appoint as the new academy director?” The question had Tobirama’s hand pausing in mid-air, not having managed a single bite before being reminded once again of his failures. It hadn’t crossed his mind even once to look over that particular stack of forms, despite the academic year approaching quite soon.  He cursed his lacking memory, dropping his chopsticks and scrambling to find where he’d placed the damned things.

“Oh, Tobi, I didn’t mean to- I’m sure it can wait!”

“This was supposed to be done  _two week ago_!” How he could’ve let it slip his mind for so long was a mystery, but it certainly only proved all those who whispered behind his back right. He was lacking as of late. Not even the simplest tasks seemed within his capabilities,  _why_  had he thought running  _a whole village_  was a good idea?

“Tobi.”

He ignored his brother for the moment, sifting through a few folders until he found what he hoped was the right one. When it most decidedly  _wasn’t_ , he tossed it to the side as well, eyes scanning the mess that was his desk trying to find any hint of the blasted things. Though it was possible they had been filed away. He shot up at the thought, moving to look through the filing cabinets he’d had installed the day after his inauguration.

His search was stopped by two hands on his shoulder, pushing him back into his chair and holding him there. Bits of long brown hair tickling at his cheeks as he leaned back in his chair, tilting his head to stare up at his brother.

“Otouto, it’ll be alright.” Hashirama’s smile was both warm and far more understanding than Tobirama thought he deserved at the moment, but the quiet nature of it had his breath catching in his throat. The shodaime was known for beaming at family and strangers alike, boisterous laughter and forgiveness abound, sheer power at his fingertips, his every mood worn out on his sleeves.

Precious few knew his quiet side. The soft smile he saved for those closest to him, the one that touched his eyes more than anything else. It never failed to make his heart beat a traitorous rhythm, knowing he was privy to such a sight, knowing most often it was gifted to  _him_.

One of those warm hands touched his cheek, causing him to fight the urge to lean into it, hoping his brother couldn’t tell how that simple gesture made his heart ache.

“You’re too hard on yourself, otouto. It can wait until tomorrow.”

He huffed at the thought, if only to give himself more time to think of what to say, the closeness stealing the words from his tongue as it always did. Closing his eyes helped a little, though only just, the lack of sight making the scent of his brother’s body-wash more noticeable than before.

“I shouldn’t have waited so long to begin with.”

“You’ve had other things on your mind. One little thing slipping through the cracks won’t burn the village down.”

“It’s not just  _one little thing_.” It was hard not to slump down then, glancing over at the sea of work still left unfinished on his desk. “We’re at the cusp of a full-blown territorial dispute with Yu no Kuni, and not a single one of my missives to the daimyō has made him see reason. Though, if the council were to be believed, I haven’t even  _attempted_ to contact him yet.” He leaned back again, staring imploringly up at his brother, the only person he knew who could help him. “How am I meant to lead when not even my own council believes in me?”

“They believe in you.” At his flat, disbelieving look, Hashirama sighed, his thumb absently tracing circles on his brother’s cheek. “Fear is a tricky thing, and shows up differently in everyone. They’re worried and don’t know how to handle it. Pointing fingers and pushing the responsibility of it all off on you makes it easier for them.”

“Great. That makes everything better.” He crossed his arms with another huff, unable to resist leaning ever so slightly into the hand still caressing his face.

“It’s not a comforting thought, I know. Bearing the blame for something out of your control can be...” Hashirama pursed his lips, unable to find the right word and giving up in the end, dipping down to kiss the top of his brother’s head. His hair slipped further off his shoulders as he did so, falling around Tobirama as if shutting him off from the outside world, candlelight flickering across his brother’s sun-kissed face, shinning in umber eyes and making him swallow hard.

“You’re doing well, otouto. It’s not fair to expect yourself to be perfect.”

Tobirama tried not to fidget at the endearment, though it was made doubly hard to remain still at how genuine the praise sounded coming from his brother. The fact that the praise went right to where it most certainly  _shouldn’t_  should have made him feel much guiltier than it did, but he found it difficult to feel anything beyond the warm hand on his face, the long hair spilling over his neck, the warmth spreading in his chest from just looking into his brother’s kind eyes.

He didn’t deserve him. The  _world_  didn’t deserve a man like Hashirama, so willing to accept those around him, flaws and all. So willing to point out another’s worthh and not a word of it ingenuine.

When his brother dipped closer once more, he felt his eyes flutter closed, lips ghosting across his forehead as the hand on his shoulder moved across his chest.

“You’ve been doing so well lately. You know that?” It was impossible to hide the slight hitch in his breath, though if Hashirama noticed he didn’t say. Only ran his hand up his neck, tilting his head further back to kiss the tip of his nose. “I’ve always been proud of you, otouto.”

“Do you...” Tobirama had to force his eyes open, finding it hard to think straight with their breath so close to mingling, wanting nothing more than to tangle a hand in his hair and drag him that final inch closer to devour him. “Do you have  _any idea_  of what you do to me?”

Something dark shadowed Hashirama’s eyes that send a shiver down Tobirama’s spine. He didn’t dare put a name to it, already toeing the line of inappropriate like they’d done so many times before, dancing around each other even though they both knew what the other wanted.

They had both gotten bolder since Hashirama’s marriage had been annulled, no ill will between him and the Uzumaki princess but no love either. With Mito happily married to their cousin now the fear of destroying a political alliance no longer hung over them.

It had been half a year since then. At first, his brother’s illness, declining as it was, that had stayed Tobirama’s hand. Now, with nothing but breath between them, a candle-lit glow to those soft brown locks, lips so close to his own, he wasn’t sure why he’d waited at all.

“Stand up for a moment?”

Tobirama had to blink a few times before the request made sense, lost as he was in deep brown eyes. When he managed to move it was truly only for a moment, Hashirama slipping into his chair and pulling him into his lap, arms wrapped securely around him to hold him to his chest.

Whatever reaction he had been expecting, it hadn’t been this. An arm around his waist keeping him close, fingers working their way through his hair. Whispered praises interrupted only long enough to press kisses on his forehead, along his nose, over his cheek. It seemed his brother knew everything he’d done in the past few weeks, determined to mention every little thing, from successful meetings to completed projects to drafted laws to remembering breakfast the morning before. At the last one Tobirama couldn’t help but raised his head in question, trying his best to ignore how pleased he was at the attention.

“Remembering to eat is hardly something to be congratulated, Anija.”

Hashirama leaned down, brushing their noses together as he spoke. “I know how busy you’ve been, and how easy it is to forget to care for yourself.”

“You end up feeding me more often than not.” It was a bit sad when he thought on it, how often he relied on his brother. To the public he might seem the more responsible of the two, and in many ways he was. But it was Hashirama who would drag him out of his lab to rest, Hashirama who often had to remind him of the small things he needed to keep going.

“I don’t mind.” Guilt must have shown on his face, and he hid it then in the crook of his brother’s neck, winding his arms around it as he did so. “I know you can care for yourself, otouto, but I truly  _like_  taking care of you.”

Peppered kisses across his cheek had him looking back at his brother, eyes fluttering closed when one was pressed at the corner of his mouth, heart skipping. He felt a hand run down his hip, running up between his thighs and kneading at the muscle there.

“Tobira?” Opening his eyes took effort, but he was encouraged on by those lips brushing at the edge of his own, words murmured in the almost non-existent space between them. “Is it alright if Anija takes care of you?”

His nodding was a touch frantic, one hand gripping the small hairs at the back of his brother’s neck. “Kiss me.”

Hashirama wasted no time in doing so. What must have been years of unsettled desire between them lead to that point, yet Tobirama felt no need to rush the moment, content to melt into his brother’s lap, to savor the feel of their lips melding together. When the hand teasing so dangerously close finally moved to rub circles over his still-clothed cock he gasped, his brother taking the invitation to dip in and taste the moan on the tip of his tongue.

The touch was just enough to keep him grounded as his brother pulled back once more, kissing every inch of him that he could reach. Every caress was tender, as if he was something precious, as if he wanted to prove the depth of his love with every gesture, every brush of lips, every word that dripped from his tongue like he felt no shame in adoring the man gasping lightly in his arms. And when his hand finally found the ties to his pants, finally running a palm up the underside of his shaft, even that felt tender, as if it was more an act of love than lust.

“You’re doing so well for me, otouto.”

Tobirama bit his lip to stay quiet, the awe in his brother’s voice as he watched his own hand stroke his cock making it near impossible to do so. But not even biting his lip could keep the whimpers at bay when his brother continued, encouragements and praise alike bringing heat to his cheeks and setting a fire in his veins.

It should have embarrassed him how quickly he got worked up then, how soon he was all but writhing in his brother’s lap, panting. Instead, with his mind hazed, being so close to tipping over the edge and Hashirama’s voice in his ear, reminding him he had done so well, asking him to come for his big brother, all Tobirama could do was try desperately to do just that.

When he finally shook apart, there was no stopping the moan that tore out of his throat, his hands tangling further into Hashirama’s hair as he tugged harsh, not sure if he was trying to hold his brother close or hold himself together. By the time his heart calmed enough for him to hear passed it once more, he only flushed further, burying his face against the broad chest next to him, placing a hand over his brother’s mouth to shut him up.

“Anija?” With the hand still over his mouth, all he could do was hum in response. Tobirama rolled his eyes, looking towards his desk just to not be looking at him anymore. “Would you, ahh. Could you talk to me like that while I blow you?”

“ _What_?”

He huffed, settling down further to glare up at his brother. “You just jerked me off in my office, and  _now_  you’re going to get embarrassed?”

Hashirama’s sheepish grin was far too cute to be fair, though Tobirama was hardly going to let him know that. His brother glanced off to the side, squirming a little beneath him.

“Maybe later? You probably shouldn’t do that on an empty stomach...”

“Mmmm.” He’d all but forgotten about their food, but his brother was probably right. After a quick kiss, he grabbed their late-dinner off his desk, intent on finishing up as fast as possible. He might have been willing to be patient the first go around, but now he had several scenarios forming that he was all too eager to get started playing out once they got home.

**Author's Note:**

> In actual Naruto lore, Yugakure is known for its peaceful tendencies, since its economy is so heavily reliant on tourism. Buuuutt there's nothing about how the village dealt with stuff back in the founder's era, and I like to play fast and loose with canon anyway.


End file.
